Perseus and Andromeda
by NotSureHowBigYouAre
Summary: My first ever story, retelling the myth of Perseus with more focus on the dynamic between Perseus and Andromeda, and actually giving Andromeda a character.
1. Chapter 1

Andromeda stretched and yawned as she woke up. After getting dressed, she walked to the dining room for breakfast where her mother, Queen Cassiopeia, was deep in conversation with her advisors.

What happened?" Andromeda asked as she sat down. "We lost another ship, our most well protected one, to that damnable monster," her mother replied.

"Has father returned?"

"No, and I don't know what he thinks that Oracle will tell him. We need to kill it, if we continue to lose ships, we may not be able to support ourselves."

"Surely it won't go that far!" Andromeda exclaimed. "What about our land routes?"

"Our sea routes are far more prosperous and quicker than our land routes," Cassiopeia pointed out, "our land routes need soldiers to defend them, and take more supplies. Our kingdom won't collapse, but we will be much weaker, and an upstart nation may conquer us."

"Perhaps we should appease the Gods," Andromeda suggested, "maybe we've angered them."

The Queen scoffed, "If the Gods were truly angry, we should be off the map by now. The Gods take no interest in us, they have ." As she said that, Andromeda felt a slight rumble shake the table, but the others took no notice, and Andromeda decided she imagined it. "But you should not worry yourself with such matters, you've barely reached womanhood, these are not your struggles."

Andromeda knew how most princesses and queens operated, and she refused to be nothing but a pretty face. She would take after her mother, and assume an active role in governing her people. She was about to point this out, when a servant burst in, "Queen Cassiopeia! Princess Andromeda! King Cepheus has returned!"

"Where is he?" Demanded Cassiopeia.

"In the master bedroom my liege, he has sent for you, and you too, Princess." Andromeda frowned, she wasn't usually invited to these meetings. She often had to beg the details from her mother after the fact. Perhaps her father was finally letting go of his over-protectiveness.

Andromeda and her mother entered the room, watched over by two guards. Previously a strong, handsome man, Cepheus looked as if he aged ten years over the course of his brief trip. As the two women entered the room, his eyes brightened, but still contained a deep sadness.

"Ah, my beautiful wife and daughter, it gladdens me to see you, though I regret that I must bring you these tidings. My audience with the Oracle was… distressing, to say the least."

Cassiopeia reached out and took her husband's hand, saying "No matter what you were told, we are here for you, we can and will recover."

Cepheus' expression darkened. "I don't know that we will."

"Why don't you tell us everything that happened on your journey?" Suggested Cassiopeia.

Cepheus began, "The journey to Delphi was uneventful. I didn't run into the monster, which the Oracle said was called Cetus." Motioning to Cassiopeia, he continued "The Oracle said the Nereids were angered by your boasts about Andromeda's beauty, and petitioned Poseidon to destroy us, thus causing the earlier flood and the appearance of Cetus."

"That's ridiculous!" exclaimed Cassiopeia. "What do immortals care about my opinion of my own daughter!?"

"I can't explain their thoughts or their reactions." Cepheus said sadly. "I was told-" his breath hitched and he sighed miserably. "I was told that the only way for the monster to leave us alone is to sacrifice Andromeda." Andromeda didn't know how to react, surely her father must be joking? But the pained look in his eyes said something else. She looked at the guards in the room, and a horrible suspicion began dawning on her.

"Father. Surely you aren't even considering this? Surely you won't sacrifice your only daughter just to keep your throne?" She said, on the verge of tears. "Please father!"

"I'm sorry daughter. This hurts me to no end. I will carry the guilt of my act for the rest of my life."

"Wait!" Her mother interjected, and Andromeda's heart soared with hope. "Are you truly going to trust the word of some mystic? We may suffer, but we won't be wiped out by this!"

"The Oracle showed me visions of what would happen if I didn't. Aethiopia destroyed, our people slaughtered by foreign armies. As much as I hate this, and as much as I hate myself for this, guards, please take my daughter to the carriage prepared outside."

"No!" Andromeda shouted as the guards grabbed her arms. "Please! Mother, make him see reason! Let me go!" She continued to plead, struggling and crying as the guards took her to the carriage that she had once loved taking on trips to foreign lands. She continued thrashing as the carriage was taken to the coast, and didn't stop until she was tied to a standing stone overlooking the coastline that had once belonged to her. She cried out, begging the Gods for mercy until she finally fell silent, resigned to her fate. And it was there she stood for days, awaiting her fate, until she thought she would die of thirst before Cetus showed up.


	2. Chapter 2

Perseus was still buzzing with pride. It had been several days since he killed Medusa, and he was still in disbelief! Dozens of would-be heroes failed to slay the gorgon and him, barely a man, succeeded! As he walked down the coastline, he gazed at the ocean and thought about his mother's face when he returned triumphantly. However, that would have to wait, as he noticed a woman next to a standing stone, gazing out at the sea. As he approached her, though, he noticed she was tied to the stone, and wasn't standing on her own. Shocked, he ran to her, drawing his sword as he did.

However, as he neared her, the Earth began rumbling, and from the sea rose a colossal… thing rose from the waves. The monster had a dragon-like head with a forked tongue, pure black eyes, a smooth, greenish-yellow body, and two flippers. It swept it's gaze back and forth, locking on the girl tied to the stone.

Perseus realized that someone left the girl there on purpose, and swore angrily. He internally vowed to kill the beast and save the girl, and then track whoever trapped her here. Now that he had a plan, the only thing left to figure out was how to kill the beast looming before him. While he was trying to plan, the beast leaned towards the girl, and Perseus leapt in front of her, brandishing his sword. The beast started back, and he considered pulling out Medusa's head to petrify the monster, but he didn't want to risk petrifying the girl he was trying to protect. The monster got lower in the water, as if to pounce, and Perseus began shouting insults at the creature and ran to the side, hoping to draw it away. He succeeded, and the monster swung its head towards him. Shouting a warcry, he leapt off the cliff, activating his winged sandals on the way down. The beast was taken aback by his suicidal rush, and was slow to react as Perseus flew past him, striking the monster on its shoulder as he passed. The monster roared in anger, and struck the water with its flippers, spraying water almost all the way up to Perseus. As he was rising to escape the spray, the beast lunged at him, and Perseus narrowly avoided getting eaten. As he dodged right, Perseus flew forward and put out the monster's eye. Perseus landed on the cliff for a reprieve as the monster roared and thrashed, hoping it would leave. Unfortunately, he only seemed to enrage the monster, as it fixed its remaining eye on him and moved towards him. Perseus edged to the monster's blind side, and once more leapt out over the waves. The monster was unable to land a hit on Perseus, but he couldn't do any damage to the monster no matter how many times he hit it. It didn't seem to bleed when Perseus cut it, and every time he tried to put out its other eye, he nearly got snapped up. The beast was slowing down, but Perseus thought he was slowing down faster, and he knew he had to end the fight as quickly as possible before the monster got a lucky hit, so he flew behind the woman and pulled out Medusa's head, averting his eyes as he did so.

The abrupt silence that followed told him that the gambit worked, and he allowed himself a moment of satisfaction before running to where the woman was tied to the stone. As he reached the girl, he gasped as he saw her state of health. She was probably very beautiful, with long dark hair and light brown skin, but she was gaunt and malnourished, her dress hung loosely off her body, and her eyes were glazed over, seeming to barely take notice of him as he cut her chains. As soon as he cut her down, she fell to the ground, being caught by Perseus.

"Who are you?" Asked Perseus. His only response was a coughing fit, and he ran to where he dropped his supplies, grabbing his waterskin and some food. He offered her the waterskin, and she drank deeply, then reached for the food in his hands, which he relinquished.

"Thank you," she said in a hoarse voice. "My name is Andromeda."


	3. Chapter 3

_It has to be a mirage, it just has to be, _Andromeda thought. And yet the food and water she was given felt very real as did the strange man looking down at her. With a start, she realized he was saying something to her.

"I'm sorry, what was that?" She asked.

"Why were you out here? Who brought you here?" He demanded, a fierce glint in his eye.

Andromeda then remembered what had gotten her there, and her previous life. Tears filled her eyes, the sense of misery and betrayal threatening to overwhelm her.

"Whoa there, it's okay, that's not what's important right now, you need to rest and recover," after a moment, he added "I'm Perseus, by the way."

Andromeda wiped her eyes, saying "It's fine, you deserve to know. The monster, whose name is Cetus, was sent because my parents apparently angered Poseidon, and they tried to appease him by," she momentarily choked up.

"No," Perseus said, disbelief and anger evident in his voice. "Why? Why would they do that? Tell me they at least tried other solutions!"

Andromeda explained what happened that led to her being chained to a rock, much to the shock of Perseus. When she finished, Perseus was silent for a long time, before finally saying "Gods, that's awful. No wonder - hey are you okay? Stay with me!" She collapsed, suddenly dizzy and light-headed.

Perseus helped her up, then said, "You need to rest, I'll build a camp for the night, be right back." Before she could protest, he was already gone. She pulled her legs up to her body, shivering, and thought about what happened. Her only experience talking with men was dealing with a lot of bravado, but not much backing it up. Every guy she talked to was mostly just interested in her as a princess, or getting to her parents through her. Perseus, however, was the only man with actual bragging rights she had met, and yet he was far more modest and shy. Perseus interrupted her thoughts when he returned, giving her his sleeping bag and grabbing some food for himself.

"You should get some sleep," Perseus told her. Andromeda nodded, then looked him in the eye and said, "I still haven't thanked you, you saved my life."

"I did what anyone else would have." Perseus replied, averting his eyes. He seemed uncomfortable with the compliment, which only confirmed what she thought about him.

"I very much doubt that," she retorted. "You attacked a sea monster, most people would have run away screaming. Just take the compliment." She said with a slight smile.

"Fine. Thank you, now you need to get to sleep." He didn't need to tell her, as her eyes were already closing, as she drifted off to sleep.

She woke to the crackling of fire and the smell of rabbit cooking. Perseus was tending to the fire, and when he noticed her, he offered her his waterskin and a stick of meat.

"Morning," she yawned, taking a swig from the waterskin.

"Morning," he replied, "Probably not the type of meal you're used to, but it's what we got."

"I didn't spend all my time at the palace, I have been camping before," she said defensively. It wasn't entirely true, she had spent nights outside before, just well-guarded, well-fed, and with much more shelter than a sleeping bag.

"All right, sorry," he relented. "We do need to talk though."

"About what?" she asked.

"What are you going to do now? I mean, I doubt you want to go home."

"Well, I don't know what my options are. I have no idea where to go, I can't hunt, I have no money, I don't even know where we are right now," She was getting more and more panicked as she talked, until tears came from her eyes and she covered her face with her hands, crying.

She felt a tentative touch on her shoulder, and looked up to see Perseus looking down at her with concern. "If you want, you can come with me, I can hunt and prepare food for us until we find a boat to get to Greece, and Argos, where I come from, is on the coast. The sea journey only took about two days, and you'll be safe in Argos." As he talked, Andromeda calmed and began considering his proposal. She knew it was likely her only option, and she made her choice. She threw her arms around him and kissed him on the cheek, saying "Thank you so much, you have no idea how much this means to me," and pulled away from him, taking a shaky breath.

"Uhhh, yeah, no problem," Perseus stammered, flustered. "There is one thing I want you to do for me."

"And what's that?" She asked.

"You gotta learn how to take care of yourself. If you come with me, I'm going to teach you how to cook, hunt, and defend yourself." She wiped her eyes again and smiled at him

"Deal."


	4. Chapter 4

Perseus was still stunned. Less than a day ago, Andromeda had been chained to a rock, set to be _sacrificed_ by her own parents, and a week ago, she had been a princess, living in luxury. Now she was about to upend her entire life, leaving her country for perhaps the first time in her life, but here she was with a smile on her face! _I'm the one whose slain previously unbeatable monsters, but I suspect that she may have the stronger will, _he pondered.

"Now what?" Andromeda asked. Perseus stirred, and realized they still needed to make plans for the journey.

"Now we figure out where to go," he replied. He reached for his pack, pulling out a map.

"We are about here," he said, pointing out an area on the eastern coast of Africa, "We could probably find a port pretty close to here, but I don't know this place very well…"

"Wait," Andromeda interjected, "If at all possible, I would prefer to avoid any Aethiopian cities. We might attract unwanted attention, if the princess is seen traveling with a strange Greek man," she pointed out. "I'd also personally like as little to do with this place as possible."

"Oh, uhhhh yeah, good point. Sorry,"' he said, embarrassed. He looked over the map for a while, then said, "Well then, I think our best bet is to head due west to the Nile and follow it north to the Mediterranean, where we should be able to find a port city and get a boat ride to Argos."

Andromeda nodded, then asked "how long will that take?"

"It should only take a few days at most to reach the Nile, but how long it takes to reach the coast depends on how soon we find a boat. We should probably travel on foot a few days up the river to avoid using an Aethiopian boat."

"Actually, uh, there is one town I want to visit, I really need new clothes." Andromeda said, looking somewhat embarrassed. "It's fairly close to here, west and slightly to the south."

"That's probably a good idea," he agreed. "Now, unless there's something else to discuss, we should get going."

Perseus and Andromeda packed up their camp, and Perseus carried their supplies with them. Andromeda had insisted on helping to carry the supplies, but he had refused, citing her current state of weakness. While they walked, Perseus pointed out areas where small game liked to hide, and gave her a dagger, instructing her on what to do should they be attacked.

"Keep that dagger hidden, try to act helpless, and when you see an opportunity to strike, take it. No offense, but you're unlikely to win many straight fights, so leave those to me," he explained.

"I don't like the idea of letting you fight for me while I watch helplessly," Andromeda interjected.

"Well, if and when we come across another sword, and when you've recovered, maybe I'll give you some pointers," he suggested. Andromeda seemed agreeable, so they continued on in silence for an hour or so, until Andromeda pointed out the town on the horizon. They found a cave and set up their camp, while Perseus geared up to go to the town.

"Stay here, I'll be back tonight. While I'm there, I'm going to get another sleeping bag, as well as some food." Perseus left his shield and bow behind, but kept his sword with him. He made it to the town without incident, and while he got some strange looks from the locals, nobody stopped him as entered the gates. He asked a local for directions, and found a general store where he bought some supplies. He realized he had forgotten to take Andromeda's measurements, so he gave it his best guess, thanked the tailor, and left. He ran into a problem, however, when trying to leave the town. The sun had already set, and a guard stopped him as he tried to leave.

"Halt, traveler! What is your business trying to leave this place, armed and with goods in your arms under the cover of darkness?" The guard demanded, his hand on his sword.

_Damn it, _Perseus thought, panic started to blossom in his chest. He regained his composure, took a deep breath, and replied "My apologies, sir, I have been commissioned by my sick mother to purchase supplies here, you may ask the merchants, I did pay, and I got turned around. I was supposed to arrive here by midday, and return by night. I must be going now, my mother will be very angry with me."

The guard relaxed, but his hand did not leave his sword. "Then why are you armed? And you look to be Greek to me, why do you live here?" He questioned.

"It is dangerous outside the walls, sir, especially for a foreigner such as myself. The sword is for show anyways, I barely know how to swing it," Perseus lied, "As for why I live here, I haven't got the faintest idea, my mother never tells me when I ask."

The guard showed the faintest smile then, and his hand left his sword. "Well then, I guess you're free to go, would you like an escort? If you came by horse, we have our own horses as well," the guard offered.

"No thank you, sir, if it's all the same to you, I'd prefer that my mother never found out about this little misadventure of mine."

"Alright then, stay safe and out of trouble, foreigner." Perseus thanked the guard, and hurried down the main road. As soon as he was out of view from the gate, he veered off the road and made his way to the cave where he and Andromeda set up camp, thanking the Gods for his escape.


	5. Chapter 5

It was the first time Andromeda had been alone since Perseus rescued her, and she didn't like it. Every noise scared her, every shadow was a monster. However, it wasn't the monsters outside that scared her the most, it was the monsters in her head that were tormenting her. Andromeda realized how much she had depended on Perseus to keep her sane, and without his reassuring presence distracting her, unwelcome thoughts crowded her mind. She sat by the fire taking deep breaths, trying to stave off the poisonous thoughts, on the verge of tears. Eventually, when she regained her composure, she realized it had been far too long, and Perseus she have returned by now. _He's fine, he can take care of himself, worst case scenario he got lost, _she reassured herself, but fresh panic still assailed her in waves. Her panic got worse when she heard footsteps outside the cave. She considered his bow, but she didn't know how to use it, so she grabbed his shield and her dagger and hid in the back of the cave. As soon as the figure entered the cave, she charged them and thrust her dagger at the person's leg. The man dropped what he was carrying, sidestepped the blow, disarmed her, and sprang backwards. Andromeda realized her mistake, and a host of emotions swirled around in her mind. Embarrassment, shame, but also a profound relief.

"Thanks for the warm welcome," Perseus said, handing Andromeda her dagger back.

"Sorry," she apologized, blushing. "You were late, and I got kinda paranoid."

"Would it have killed you to hide for another few seconds?"

"Maybe," she said defensively, "for all I knew, you were trying to kill me."

"I think you knew," he teased. "How about this, I announce when I'm entering the campsite, and you don't try to stab everyone you see?" He suggested.

"Yeah, sure. Why were you late anyway?" She asked, changing the subject.

"Got held up by some guards, apparently a foreigner carrying goods out of the city after sunset is suspicious. Here's your clothes, by the way, I hope they fit." He stood by the edge of the cave, facing away from her to give her some privacy.

She tried them on, and was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to move around, especially compared to the resplendent dresses she had to wear around the palace. They were a little big, but she figured they'd fit better as she recovered and regained some weight. "They'll work fine," then she spread her arms and said, "What do you think?" Once he had turned around.

"Looks good," he said, smiling awkwardly. Was he blushing, or was it her imagination? _Probably just the firelight, _she thought.

Changing the subject again, she asked "What did you say to the guard? Or did you just push past him and run away?"

"I told him I had to get home to my mom as fast as possible, not entirely a lie, I guess," he said. She nodded, then yawned and crawled into her sleeping bag, but Perseus hadn't even spread his new sleeping bag yet. He still sat looking into the fire.

"Not tired?" She asked him.

"Nah, still got some adrenaline pumping from talking with the guard, and from you attacking me. I imagine I'll be exhausted in a couple of minutes or so."

"Sorry again, by the way." Perseus acknowledged her with a nod. "Good night, Perseus."

"Good night."

Light was streaming into the cave when Andromeda woke up, and for a moment she thought she was back in the palace, until her arm brushed against the cold stone of the cave. A momentary pang of sadness hit her, but she steeled herself and looked around. Perseus was already up, and had evidently been up for a while, as there was something cooking on a spit over a fire.

"Hey, you're finally awake," Perseus said. "Breakfast will be ready soon, then we head out."

"How are you always awake so early?" She grumbled as she packed up her stuff.

"I'm a light sleeper, what can I say," Perseus said. "Oh, and I wasn't raised in a luxurious palace." Andromeda didn't dignify that with a response, just finished packing her stuff and grabbed some food. They made some small talk over breakfast, and she asked Perseus about the bag he carried around.

"Before I found you, I was on my way home from slaying Medusa, this Gorgon lady whose head turns people to stone," Perseus explained. "This bag…"

"Oh gross," she interrupted. "Why are you carrying her head around?"

"Well, it's how I killed Cetus, I got it to look at the head, and it turned to stone and collapsed. It's also proof of my deed." She would have asked more about it, but she was already nauseous thinking about Perseus carrying a severed head around, and she didn't want to throw up on her new clothes.

"We should head out," Perseus said after they had both finished eating. Andromeda agreed, and they grabbed their stuff and left the cave.


End file.
